The 'patina' - character - of the car only made it more attractive to potential buyers

The race-winning Mercedes languished in a warehouse for decades before today's auction

Fangio, who died in 1995 and won five world championships, is considered to be the first superstar F1 driver

Nicknamed El Maestro, Fangio once
said: 'When I was in a racing car, I always liked to see exactly where
the wheels were pointing.

'I asked for a version with no
bodywork covering the wheels for the Nurburgring race, and in no time
Mercedes had built one - and I drove it to win the German Grand Prix.'

Motoring historian Doug Nye said Fangio would shake his head and smile a 'slow smile' if he were alive to see today's auction.

'He was a humble man, originally a mechanic from a potato town in Argentina, and he never forgot his roots,' said Mr Nye.

'As a driver, he was simply a genius. As a man he had no enemies. He was
universally loved, even by those he regularly beat on track. No
standard-setting sportsman could have a better epitaph.

Bonhams chairman Robert Brooks is seen peering under the bonnet of the 2.5litre car before the auction

The car was sold to a private collector in the 1980s and then to a German businessman

The £19.6million total smashed the previous £10.8million record set by a 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Prototype in 2011

THE MERCEDES-BENZ W196: A LEGENDARY RACER

After the 1954 season, Fangio's Mercedes W196 appeared at the following year's Italian grand prix but suffered gearbox failure.

It was re-prepared to full race standard later that year and consigned to the Daimler-Benz Museum in Germany.

In June 1965 it was exhibited in Munich and during 1966 it was shown at Le Mans in France and Hockenheim in Germany.

It then appeared at the 1967 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, before being run in a tyre test at the Unterturkheim factory test-track and displayed in Berlin.

In November 1967 it was exhibited at Stuttgart University.

The car made further appearances in Luxembourg, Berlin and Hamburg in 1969 and was eventually presented to the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, Hampshire, in the 1970s.

It was sold to a private collector in the 1980s and then into the ownership of a German businessman.

'Mercedes has long been recognised for the world-class quality of its
products and in 1954/55 they set out to rebuild their reputation for
automotive excellence post-war.'

Mr Nye said the car was a 'window into the past'.

He said: 'In every area of the car,
there is evidence of just the most fantastic workmanship. It was
designed by very sophisticated, hi-tech engineers.

'But more than that it was made by
ordinary working men who did a brilliant job.

'It's hand crafted and it's
just like a piece of mechanical jewellery.'

Bonhams chairman Robert Brooks said: 'I have handled some of the world's most desirable and important motor cars during a motoring auction career spanning five decades, but I have reached a peak today with this legendary grand prix car.

'It was a personal privilege to preside over the sale of this vehicle, which is not only one of the most significant motor cars of the 20th century, but also the most important historic Grand Prix racing car ever offered for sale.'

The auction house said the Mercedes is one of the most significant cars of the 20th century and the most important historic Grand Prix racing car offered at public auction.

Potential buyers from three continents had shown interest in the vehicle, which was sold with noticeable blemishes.

James Knight, group motoring director
at Bonhams, said: 'We had eight telephone bidders at the start of the
bidding and we had three people in the audience, so we had more than ten
people who were prepared to spend.

'Of those 11 bidders, only five got the chance to bid.

'We always knew that it was a very, very important car.'

Formula 1 legend Sir Stirling Moss, left, and current Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, right, posed at Silverstone with the W196 and this season's car before the auction

Experts thought the car could fetch about £10million at auction - almost half of its final sale price

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Mercedes driven by F1 legend Juan Manuel Fangio to two Grand Prix wins in 1954 becomes the most expensive car ever sold at public auction after going for £19.6MILLION